Although he conceded a poor start to the final round cost him the chance to put pressure on the leaders, Westwood said the result proved there was merit to the work done on the range with new coach Mike Walker.

“A little bit of disappointment”, he said after his final round.

“I was after a quick start today and was three over after four, so it’s not ideal.”

“I was hitting some good shots and getting a few unlucky breaks, so it was just not my day.”

“Still, seventh, it’s my best result of the year. I think the work I’m doing with Mike, my coach, is taking me in the right direction, but the Masters came a couple of weeks too early.”

The 40-year-old will hope to carry the momentum into this weekend’s Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur.

Westwood won the event in 1997, but hasn’t played in it since 2007.

“It’s been seven years since I last played in Malaysia and it’s certainly nice to be back.”